The news has currently been filled with natural disasters hitting multiple highly populated areas of the world. Hurricanes and earthquakes have recently affected areas in Mexico, Florida, Puerto Rico, Cuba, the Virgin Islands, and St. Martin. Towns have been destroyed and people have been left with a lack of food, water, and electricity. Help goes a long way, and currently, our fellow humans need our help to recover—and potentially survive—a tragic and unexpected hardship.
Here are five ways we can contribute to the cause:
1. Monetary donations.
One of the fastest ways to get help to victims of natural disaster is by donating money. Sites such as Salvation Army and American Red Cross give people options for donations right on the site and in person. The Hispanic Federation is also accepting donations and Apple enables users to donate right on the app store. Some sites will also provide numbers to text for an immediate donation.
2. Physical donations.
You can host your own donation drive or donate to a local one. Victims are in need of hygiene products, toiletries, water, non-perishable food, clothes, baby food and diapers, and an endless number of products. Salvation Army, United Way, Adopt a Family USVI, and even local charities accept donations and will send them to the affected areas.
3. Providing shelter.
Airbnb's disaster program, Open Homes, asks for people to open up their homes and rentals to those being evacuated and/or are affected by the destruction of the storms and quakes. Areas currently in dire need are the San Antonio area, Antigua and Barbuda, Puerto Rico, Guadeloupe, St. Martin and Sint Maarten, Florida Panhandle, Tallahassee, greater Orlando, greater Miami, greater Tampa, Northern Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Alabama, Central Mexico, and Mount Agung. If you do not have space to open up, you can also volunteer at a local shelter.
4. On-site help.
A large problem that comes from storms and quakes is the amount of debris piled up. It has to be one of the first things to address when trying to rebuild what has been destroyed. Picking up the pieces of a disaster brings more encouragement to communities that are affected. FEMA accepts volunteers and also has job positions that need to be filled for immediate disaster relief.
5. Survival kits.
UNICEF is offering the purchases of survival kits. For $28, the kit provided includes water purification tables, water containers, sanitary pads, hygienic items, and cleaning products. The kits help families with basic survival products that prevent diseases and infections from poor living conditions.